Opposition Believes their Low Ratings Result of Efforts by National TV-Channels

Opposition claims the results of the poll conducted by the National Democratic Institute (NDI), according to which the governing United National Movement rating is significantly higher, is mainly conditioned by the work of the national TV-channels.

Press-speaker of the opposition party Free Democrats Vako Valiani told Media.ge that the leaders of the Free Democrats, including Irakli Alasania are almost never seen in the main news blocks of the national TV-channels.

By the NDI initiative the Caucasus Research Resource Centre conducted the public opinion poll in March 2011.  The researchers asked for the opinion of the population about different political parties.  2 893 respondents have been directly interviewed in Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi and Rustavi.  Discrepancy was 3%.

For example to the question who would you vote for if parliamentary elections were held tomorrow the 48% answered for the United National Movement, 9% - for the Christian-Democrats, 5% - for the Labor Party and 3% - for the Free Democrats.

"Central TV-channels mainly speak about the National Movement which reasons the high ratings of the governing party", Avaliani said.

Inga Grigolia, Christian-Democrat member of the Tbilisi Sakrebulo told Media.ge that the national TV-channels, which broadcast throughout the country, cover only the 10% of the activities of her party, despite the fact that the party is represented in the Tbilisi Sakrebulo and Georgian Parliament.

"April 8 I held a press-briefing in the Tbilisi Sakrebulo and requested allocation of funds from the central budget for increasing the pensions of the Tbilisi pensioners.  Rustavi-2 completely ignored the given theme and Imedi lied in the 5-o'clock news that I thanked the government", Grigolia said.

According to Grigolia, only 10, or 20-second comments by the leaders of the Christian-Democratic Movement are streamed by the central TV-channels.